Image processing apparatus that performs function in action pattern corresponding to changeable user&#39;s request, control method therefor,  and storage medium storing control program therefor

ABSTRACT

An image processing apparatus that is capable of a simple operation and is capable of executing a function in an action pattern corresponding to a changeable user&#39;s request. A registration unit registers a function in association with an action pattern. A selection unit designates a function registered by the registration unit and to select one of a first mode and a second mode. A controller controls so as to execute a function designated by the selection unit according to the action pattern registered in association with the designated function when the selection unit selects the first mode, and to execute a function designated by the selection unit according to an action pattern designated by a user irrespective of the action pattern registered in association with the designated function when the selection unit selects the second mode.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus that isable to execute functions, such as a copy and facsimile, a controlmethod therefor, and a storage medium storing a control programtherefor.

Description of the Related Art

An image processing apparatus like an MFP (Multi-Function Peripheral) isbecoming to provide new functions, such as a network copy and networkprint, by cooperating with other apparatuses in addition to functions ofa stand-alone apparatus in recent years. Accordingly, kinds andcomplexity of functions are increasing. A careful description about asetting procedure is required so that a user who is unfamiliar tofunctions is able to understand the various functions. For example,there is a known MFP that allocates a specific application to a softbutton displayed on a soft-button list screen and registers settingvalues (for example, a sheet size and a color mode) that are unique tothe application concerned. There is a known technique that registers anaction pattern of such an MFP corresponding to the soft button inadvance when the setting values are registered (Japanese Laid-OpenPatent Publication (Kokai) No. 2010-154039 (JP 2010-154039A)). Theaction pattern defines whether a confirmation message about the settingvalues will be displayed before executing the application in response toan operation of the soft button and defines whether the application isimmediately executed.

The technique of the above-mentioned publication has no problem when arequest for the action pattern does not vary. However, the request forthe action pattern actually varies in a process through which a useruses the function. For example, a user who needed to confirm the settingvalues at first may not need the confirmation because of habituation dueto repeated use. In the meantime, a user who uses without confirmationmay need to confirm the setting values again when using after a longtime. The technique of the above-mentioned publication requires the userto re-register the application when changing the action patterncorresponding to the application. However, it is difficult for a user tothink that re-registration of the application is needed to change theaction pattern. Moreover, a change operation of the action pattern iscomplicated and operability is not good. Incidentally, theabove-mentioned publication suggests a technique by which the actionpattern of the MFP is decided depending on the operation pattern (pressperiod) of the soft button by a user. However, such a technique mayinduce an operation error because it is difficult to inform the user ofthe relation between the operation pattern and the action pattern.Accordingly, there is a problem that it is difficult to cope with bothsecuring of a simple operation to a user familiar to operation of afunction and securing of an operation for executing a functioncarefully.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides an image processing apparatus, a controlmethod therefor, and a storage medium storing a control programtherefor, which are capable of a simple operation and are capable ofexecuting a function in an action pattern corresponding to a changeableuser's request.

Accordingly, a first aspect of the present invention provides an imageprocessing apparatus comprising a registration unit configured toregister a function in association with an action pattern, a selectionunit configured to designate a function registered by the registrationunit and to select one of a first mode and a second mode, and acontroller configured to control so as to execute a function designatedby the selection unit according to the action pattern registered inassociation with the designated function when the selection unit selectsthe first mode, and to execute a function designated by the selectionunit according to an action pattern designated by a user irrespective ofthe action pattern registered in association with the designatedfunction when the selection unit selects the second mode.

Accordingly, a second aspect of the present invention provides a controlmethod for an image processing apparatus, the control method comprisinga registration step of registering a function in association with anaction pattern; a selection step of designating a function registered inthe registration step and of selecting one of a first mode and a secondmode, and a control step of controlling so as to execute a functiondesignated in the selection step according to the action patternregistered in association with the designated function when the firstmode is selected in the selection step, and to execute a functiondesignated in the selection step according to an action patterndesignated by a user irrespective of the action pattern registered inassociation with the designated function when the second mode isselected in the selection step.

Accordingly, a third aspect of the present invention provides anon-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing a controlprogram causing a computer to execute the control method of the secondaspect.

According to the present invention, a simple operation is allowed and afunction is able to be executed in an action pattern corresponding to achangeable user's request.

Further features of the present invention will become apparent from thefollowing description of exemplary embodiments with reference to theattached drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram schematically showing an example of an innerconfiguration of an image processing apparatus according to a firstembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a view showing configurations of data and software that areused for displaying functions and setting values of applicationsinstalled in the image processing apparatus in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a view showing an example of a top screen displayed on a touchpanel of an operation unit of the image processing apparatus in FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a view showing an example of a copy initial screen displayedon the touch panel of the operation unit of the image processingapparatus in FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart of an example of a portal button registrationprocess executed by the image processing apparatus in FIG. 1.

FIG. 6 is a view showing an example of a color setting screen displayedin relation to the portal button registration process in FIG. 5.

FIG. 7 is a view showing an example where a menu list is displayed overthe copy initial screen in FIG. 4.

FIG. 8 is a view showing an example of a setting confirmation screendisplayed in relation to the portal button registration process in FIG.5.

FIG. 9 is a view showing an example of an action setting screendisplayed in relation to the portal button registration process in FIG.5.

FIG. 10 is a view showing an example of a button display setting screendisplayed in relation to the portal button registration process in FIG.5.

FIG. 11 is a view showing an example of another button display settingscreen displayed in relation to the portal button registration processin FIG. 5.

FIG. 12 is a view showing table information registered in the portalbutton registration process in FIG. 5.

FIG. 13 is a view showing other table information registered in theportal button registration process in FIG. 5.

FIG. 14 is a view showing a set-information table saved in a storagearea of a copy application in FIG. 2.

FIG. 15 is a flowchart of a button call process executed by the imageprocessing apparatus in FIG. 1.

FIG. 16 is a view showing an example of a setting confirmation screendisplayed in relation to the button call process in FIG. 15.

FIG. 17 is a view showing an example of a copy basic screen displayed inrelation to the button call process in FIG. 15.

FIG. 18 is a flowchart of a temporary process executed by the imageprocessing apparatus in FIG. 1.

FIG. 19 is a view showing an example of an action selection pop-upwindow displayed on a touch panel of an operation unit of an imageprocessing apparatus according to a second embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 20A, FIG. 20B, and FIG. 20C are views showing examples of atemporary button information table used by the image processingapparatus according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 21 is a flowchart of a temporary process executed by the imageprocessing apparatus according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 22 is a view showing an example of the action selection pop-upwindow displayed on the touch panel of the operation unit of the imageprocessing apparatus according to the second embodiment.

DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

Hereafter, embodiments according to the present invention will bedescribed in detail with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram schematically showing an example of an innerconfiguration of an image processing apparatus according to a firstembodiment of the present invention. The image processing apparatus isprovided with a controller 100 that controls various sections in theapparatus, an operation unit 112, a scanner 123, and a printer 125 as afundamental configuration. The operation unit 112 consists of a liquidcrystal touch panel (not shown) and hard keys, such as a ten-digitkeypad for inputting a number and a start key for instructing executionof a process, for example, and provides a user interface for a user tooperate the image processing apparatus. A user is able to enter settingsand information to the image processing apparatus by touching (pressing)icons and buttons (or hard keys) displayed on the touch panel (a displaydevice) of the operation unit 112 to indicate setting items.

The scanner 123 reads an image of an original etc. as image data. Theprinter 125 conveys a recording sheet and prints the image data as avisible image onto the recording sheet. The controller 100 is connectedto the scanner 123 via a bus 122 and is connected to the printer 125 viaa bus 124. The controller 100 connects to other devices through a wiredLAN 113, a public telephone line (WAN) 114, and a wireless LAN 115, andcontrols input/output of image information and device information. A CPU101 is a controller that controls the whole system. A RAM 102 is asystem work memory for a work of the CPU 101, and is also an imagememory for storing image data temporarily. A ROM 103 is a boot ROM. Aboot program for the system is stored in the ROM 103. A hard disk drive(HDD) 104 stores system software, image data, and information(specification of wireless communications) about all wirelesscommunications that a communication unit 111 mentioned later has.

The image processing apparatus is able to add a function by installingan application that implements the function to use. Application programsfor performing various functions on the image processing apparatus arestored in the RAM 102 or the HDD 104 by installing applications. Anoperation I/F 106 is an interface with the operation unit 112 that is auser interface (UI), and outputs data that should be displayed on theoperation unit 112 to the operation unit 112. The operation I/F 106transfers information entered by a user through the operation unit 112to the CPU 101. A network unit 109 is connected to the wired LAN 113,and inputs and outputs information. A modem 110 is connected to thepublic telephone line 114, and inputs and outputs information. Thecommunication unit 111 is connected to a wireless LAN 115 through anantenna (not shown), and inputs and outputs information. Moreover, thecommunication unit 111 is able to perform a plurality of kinds ofwireless communications. The above-mentioned devices are arranged on asystem bus 107.

An image bus I/F 105 is a bus bridge that connects the system bus 107with an image bus 108 that transmits image data at high speed, and thatconverts a data structure. The image bus 108 is a bus that is defined bythe PCI bus or IEEE1394. A raster image processor (RIP) 116 among thedevices arranged on the image bus 108 develops a PDL code to a bitmapimage. A device I/F 117 connects the scanner 123 or the printer 125 tothe controller 100, and converts image data between a synchronizingsystem and an asynchronous system. A scanner image processor 118corrects, processes, and edits input image data. A printer imageprocessor 119 corrects print-out image data and converts a resolution ofthe image data so as to be suitable for the printer 125. An imagerotator 120 rotates the image data. An image processor 121 applies animage compression/extension process, such as JPEG, JBIG, MMR, and MH,and a format conversion process, such as PDF, TIFF, OCR, and encryptionto the image data.

Next, a software configuration for displaying a function and settingvalue of an application installed in the image processing apparatus onthe operation unit 112 will be described with reference to FIG. 2. FIG.2 is a view showing configurations of data and software for displayingthe function and setting value of the application on the operation unit112.

There are a copy application 2303 that has a function about a copyaction and a facsimile application 2305 that has a function about afacsimile action that sends and receives document data as applicationsinstalled in the image processing apparatus. Furthermore, there is aportal application 2307 that has a function about a portal. Theseapplications are directly installed in the image processing apparatus bya user. However, they may be installed in the image processing apparatusvia the network unit 109, the communication unit 111, etc. The installedapplications are stored in the RAM 102 or the HDD 104 as applicationprograms.

Moreover, the installed applications run independently by commands ofthe CPU 101. Accordingly, data used by the applications are grouped forthe respective applications and are stored in the HDD 104. It should benoted that data shared between the applications are stored as commondata in a common data section 2302 set up in the HDD 104. Moreover,application IDs are allocated as identifiers to the installedapplications for identifying the applications. The application IDs arestored as common data in the common data section 2302. In the firstembodiment, an application ID “100” is allocated to the copy application2303, an application ID “101” is allocated to the facsimile application2305, and an application ID “102” is allocated to the portal application2307.

The function of the window controller 2301 is achieved by collaborationof the CPU 101, the RAM 102, the ROM 103, etc. A window controller 2301selects an application of which a screen is displayed on the operationunit 112 from among the applications installed in the image processingapparatus. Each of the applications like the copy application 2303installed in the image processing apparatus obtains data, such as ascreen resource and a setting value, from the HDD 104 in response to acommand from the window controller 2301 and displays a screen. Whenreceiving a display request of the copy application 2303 (application ID“100”), the window controller 2301 determines whether the display by thefunction of the copy application 2303 is available. When the display isavailable, the window controller 230 notifies the copy application 2303of a display command. It should be noted that possible setting data usedfor displaying are sent with the display command. When receiving thedisplay command, the copy application 2303 obtains a screen resource anda setting value from a copy data section 2304 set up in the HDD 104 anddisplays a screen on the operation unit 112. In the meantime, whendisplaying data that is not stored in the copy data section 2304, thecopy application 2303 notifies the window controller 2301 of a datarequest. When receiving the data request, the window controller 2301obtains corresponding data from the common data section 2302 set up inthe HDD 104 and sends the data to the copy application 2303. Then, thecopy application 2303 displays the data.

The facsimile application 2305 enables transmission and reception ofdata about the facsimile with a facsimile data section 2306 set up inthe HDD 104. In the same manner, the portal application 2307 enablestransmission and reception of data about the portal with a portal datasections 2308 set up in the HDD 104. Although the image processingapparatus is provided with three kinds of applications including thecopy application, facsimile application, and portal application in thefirst embodiment, the image processing apparatus may be provided withother applications, such as a scan application.

FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 are views showing examples of screens displayed on thetouch panel of the operation unit 112. When the power of the imageprocessing apparatus is turned ON and is in a ready condition, a top(Main Menu) screen 300 shown in FIG. 3 is displayed on a display area ofthe touch panel of the operation unit 112 at the beginning. The topscreen 300 consists of a common area 301 where contents common amongscreens are displayed and a function area 302 where contents that arescreen specific are displayed. The common area 301 has a title bar 303for describing a screen currently displayed, a menu button 304 fordisplaying a menu for setting registration and function settingcorresponding to the screen currently displayed.

Application buttons for switching from the top screen to screens thatuse the applications, such as the copy application and the facsimileapplication, are displayed in the functional area 302. In the firstembodiment, a copy application button 309, a facsimile applicationbutton 311, and portal buttons 305, 306, 307, 308, 310, and 315 aredisplayed as the application buttons. When a new application isinstalled in the image processing apparatus, an application buttoncorresponding to the new application is displayed in the functional area302 on the top screen 300.

The menu button 304 is a button for displaying for displaying a menu forsetting registration and function setting corresponding to each screen.When the menu button 304 is pressed, a menu list 700 shown in FIG. 7mentioned later is displayed. Each application defines contentsdisplayed in the menu list 700 and internal processes corresponding toselected contents for every screen. The defined contents are stored inthe HDD 104 in association with each screen. When there is no contentthat should be displayed on the menu list 700, the menu button 304 isdisplayed with shading and cannot be selected by a user. In the firstembodiment, the applications other than the portal application certainlydefine a registration area 701 with a message of “Register portalbutton” in the menu list 700 as shown in FIG. 7 and the correspondingprocess.

A user is able to perform various settings on the operation unit 112.For example, the user can perform input of the number of copies, displayof an error status of an image formation state, bookbinding printingsetting that consists of combination of a plurality of settingoperations, etc. Hereinafter, such various settings are called “thevarious settings about image formation” generically. The portalapplication 2307 has a function (hereinafter referred to as a “callreappearance function”) that saves the various settings about imageformation as setting information and calls and reappears the savedsetting information in response to a user's request. The portalapplication 2307 also has a change-deletion function for changing ordeleting the saved various settings. Details thereof will be describedbelow.

In the first embodiment, all pieces of the information (a coordinate, afont, an image resource, a default setting value, etc.) that are usedwhen the respective applications display the screens are stored in theRAM 102, ROM 103, or HDD 104. Then, the window controller 2301determines the information that is displayed in each screen according tothe state of the image processing apparatus. The information stored inthe HDD 104 (the RAM 102 or the ROM 103 may be used) is displayed on theoperation unit 112 through the operation I/F 106.

When the copy application button 309 is pressed on the top screen 300shown in FIG. 3, a copy initial screen 400 shown in FIG. 4 is displayed.A magnification setting button 401 for setting magnification and adouble-sided setting button 405 for setting double-sided copy aredisplayed as setting buttons in a functional area 302 of the copyinitial screen 400. A color setting button 402 and a settingconfirmation button 404 for confirming the setting contents set up inthe entire copy application are displayed in the functional area 302.When either of these setting buttons is pressed, the screen is switchedto a corresponding setting screen for changing settings about copy, andthe user is allowed to change the settings. It should be noted thatsetting contents are displayed together with setting buttons aboutfundamental functions (magnification etc.) that are often used at thetime of copying. For example, when magnification is set up, the set-upresult (for example, “100%”) is displayed on a magnification settingresult area 403.

The portal buttons 305, 306, 307, 308, 310, and 315 on the top screen300 shown in FIG. 3 are buttons that are selectable by the user forcalling the various settings about the image formation saved by the callreappearance function. The portal buttons displayed have the sameconfiguration in the top screen 300. For example, the portal button 310consists of an icon 312, a button name area 313, and a comment area 314.However, the configurations of the portal buttons may differ to eachother.

Next, a flow of control when a portal button is displayed in response tothe display command of the top screen 300 will be described. Theinformation for displaying the portal buttons is stored and managed astable information as shown in FIG. 13. Button information including anicon, a button name, and a comment is stored in the HDD 104 inassociation with other information. In the table information shown inFIG. 13, an application ID, an action ID, icon information, and thebutton information are associated with a portal button number (No.). Theicon information includes image data in a bitmap format that can bedisplayed as an icon or a path to the image data. The button informationincludes a button name and a comment about this button. The button nameis displayed in the button name area 313 and the comment is displayed inthe comment area 314 (FIG. 3). It should be noted that the action IDwill be described later.

When the CPU 101 detects the display statement of the top screen 300,the window controller 2301 issue a command to the portal application2307 so as to control the display of the portal buttons. Thereby, theportal application 2307 detects a group that is designated to displayfrom the HDD 104 and detects the portal buttons belonging to the group.Then, the CPU 101 determines an application ID of a normally operatableapplication. After that, the portal application 2307 reads the buttoninformation about the portal buttons corresponding to the applicationIDs of the normally operatable applications among the detected portalbuttons from the HDD 104 and displays these portal buttons according tothe read information. Accordingly, the top screen 300 as shown in FIG. 3including the portal buttons is displayed on the touch panel of theoperation unit 112. When a portal button is operated by pressing, theportal application 2307 executes a function registered in associationwith (corresponding to) the operated portal button. This function (job)corresponds to the registered function in the present invention.Contents displayed when the menu button 304 is operated will bedescribed later.

Next, a process for registering settings about the image formation ofeach application as a portal button will be described. The process forregistering a processing about the image formation of each applicationas a portal button by the call reappearance function will be describedwith reference to FIG. 5. Although the copy application is described asan example in the following description, the similar process is appliedto another application, such as the facsimile application.

It should be noted that all processes in the first embodiment areexecuted because the portal application 2307 obtains the informationthat is saved beforehand in the HDD 104 and an input by a user andissues various execution commands using the CPU 101 on the basis of theinformation. Moreover, all processes of the copy application 2303 andthe portal application 2307 are executed according to determination ofthe CPU 101. Moreover, when a user touches the touch panel (screen) ofthe operation unit 112, the CPU 101 detects a coordinate position on thetouched screen, and switches the screen or executes a setting process byreading a process program associated with this coordinate position fromthe HDD 104 and by running it. Moreover, all the results of theprocesses executed by the commands from the CPU 101 are stored in theRAM 102 or the HDD 104.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart of an example of a portal button registrationprocess. In FIG. 5, the process executed by the copy application 2303 isillustrated at the left side and the process executed by the portalapplication 2307 is illustrated at the right side in order todistinguish the processes executed by the respective applicationclearly. The process of the flowchart in FIG. 5 is achieved when the CPU101 reads a program stored in the ROM 103 to the RAM 102 and runs it.FIG. 5 describes a case where a function of which the color setting ischanged to “monochrome” in the copy application 2303 is registered asthe portal button 315. In the process in FIG. 5, the CPU 101 correspondsto the registration unit in the present invention.

First, when detecting the pressing of the copy application button 309 bya user on the top screen 300 shown in FIG. 3, the copy application 2303switch the screen from the top screen 300 to the copy initial screen 400(FIG. 4). Then, the copy application 2303 detects various settings aboutthe image formation (copy) by the user on the copy initial screen 400,and stores the detected settings in the HDD 104 as the settinginformation (step S501).

Screen transition in response to concrete operations by the user forvarious settings about the image formation will be described withreference to FIG. 6 through FIG. 11. FIG. 6 through FIG. 11 are viewsshowing examples of the screen displayed on the operation unit 112 inrelation to the portal button registration process. When the colorsetting button 402 is pressed on the copy initial screen 400, the copyapplication 2303 switches the screen to a color setting screen 600 shownin FIG. 6. When a monochrome button 601 is pressed on the color settingscreen 600, the copy application 2303 reverses the color of themonochrome button. When an OK button 602 is pressed in this state, thecopy application 2303 stores the set color (monochrome in this case) inthe HDD 104 and restores the screen to the previous screen (copy initialscreen 400 in this case).

Next, a process for registering the set contents as a portal button willbe described. First, when detecting pressing of the menu button 304(FIG. 4), the copy application 2303 executes a registration command as aportal in step S502. That is, the copy application 2303 displays themenu list 700 over the copy initial screen 400, as shown in FIG. 7.Then, when detecting the pressing of the registration area 701 in themenu list 700, the copy application 2303 shifts to a portal-buttonregistration mode.

When going into the portal-button registration mode, the copyapplication 2303 displays a confirmation screen 800 as a dialog on thecopy initial screen 400 (step S503) as shown in FIG. 8 and waits for theinput of the content confirmation from the user (step S504). A cancelbutton 801 and a next button 802 are displayed besides the contents (acolor setting, a type of an original, etc.) set up by the user in theconfirmation screen 800. The copy application 2303 determines whetherthe contents have been confirmed (OK) on the basis of whether the nextbutton 802 has been pressed. Then, the copy application 2303 returns theprocess to the step S502 when the contents have not been confirmed. Whenthe contents have been confirmed, the copy application 2303 sends aregistration request to the portal application 2307 (step S505). Thatis, the copy application 2303 obtains the application ID of the copyapplication 2303 and the icon information for displaying as a portalbutton from the HDD 104 and sends them to the portal application 2307.It should be noted that the information about the settings like thecolor setting etc. is not sent.

Specifically, the copy application 2303 obtains the application ID andthe icon information from the storage area, which includes the commondata section 2302 and copy data section 2304, for the copy application2303 set up in the HDD 104. Then, the window controller 2301 is notifiedof these pieces of information. Then, the window controller 2301notifies the portal application 2307 of these pieces of information. Theportal application 2307 stores the received information in the storagearea, which includes the common data section 2302 and portal datasection 2308, for the portal application 2307. When receiving theregistration request from the copy application 2303, the portalapplication 2307 displays an action setting screen 900 on the operationunit 112 as shown in FIG. 9 and registers action information (an actionpattern) of the portal button set by the user through the screen 900(step S506). Soft buttons 901, 902, 903, and 904, a back button 905, anda next button 906 are displayed on the action setting screen 900. Thesoft buttons 901 through 904 are used for designating whether thecontents of the setting information should be displayed as a UI screento confirm before executing the process (function corresponding to theportal button) concerning the setting information set up for the portalbutton. The soft buttons 901 and 902 are respectively used to turn ONand OFF the setting confirmation display function. When the settingconfirmation display function is turned ON, a setting confirmationscreen 1600 (FIG. 16) is displayed in a button call process (FIG. 15)mentioned later. The soft buttons 903 and 904 are respectively used toset an immediate execution function that designates whether the functionprocess concerning the setting information corresponding to the portalbutton is immediately executed or not. When the immediate executionfunction is set to ON by pressing the soft button 903, the functionprocess is started without displaying a setting screen (FIG. 17) in abutton call process (FIG. 15) mentioned later. In the meantime, when theimmediate execution function is set to OFF by pressing the soft button904, the setting screen (FIG. 17) is displayed in the button callprocess (FIG. 15) and the function process is started after receiving astart operation from a user.

Next, the portal application 2307 determines whether the registrationbecame OK by pressing the next button 906 on the action setting screen900 (step S507). Then, the portal application 2307 returns the processto the step S502 when the registration does not become OK. In themeantime, when the registration becomes OK, the portal application 2307executes portal-button display setting (step S508). That is, the portalapplication 2307 displays a button-display setting screen 1000 shown inFIG. 10. Soft buttons each of which selects and inputs a button-displayposition are displayed on the button-display setting screen 1000. When auser presses a next button 1001 after selecting the display position bypressing one of the soft buttons in the button-display setting screen1000, the portal application 2307 displays a button-display settingscreen 1100 shown in FIG. 11. An input box for inputting a buttondisplay name is displayed on the button-display setting screen 1100.When the portal application 2307 detects the pressing of a next button1101 that means completion of the setting after a user inputs a name ofthe button and inputs a comment if needed in the button display settingscreen 1100, the process proceeds to step S509. In the step S509, theportal application 2307 executes a portal-button generation process onthe basis of the contents input and set up through the action settingscreen 900 and the button-display setting screens 1000 and 1100.

In order to generate the portal button, the portal application 2307first generates an action ID by which the current registration requestis uniquely identified in combination with the application ID. In thefirst embodiment, a consecutive number from “1” shall be assigned to theaction ID for each application. Next, the portal application 2307generates the portal button on the basis of the application ID, actionID, icon information, and button information. Specifically, the portalapplication 2307 update the table information by overwriting the tableinformation shown in FIG. 13 with table information in FIG. 12 throughthe above-mentioned registration process in the storage area for theportal application 2307 in the HDD 104. In the table information shownin FIG. 12, the application ID of the copy application 2303, the actionID, the icon information, and the button information are associated andnewly stored as one portal button. Thereby, the post-update tableinformation (FIG. 12) includes a portal button No. 6 that is added tothe pre-update table information (FIG. 13) by the above-mentionedregistration process. The portal button 315 shall correspond to theportal button No. 6. When the process in FIG. 5 is executed in the statewhere the portal button 315 is unregistered, the portal button 315corresponding to the portal button No. 6 is additionally displayed onthe top screen 300 (FIG. 3) after that.

When the portal button has been generated, the portal application 2307sends the generated action ID together with the completion notice to thecopy application 2303 (step S510). The copy application 2303 associatesthe received action ID (call information) with the contents (settinginformation) set up in the step S501 and saves it to the storage areafor the copy application 2303 in the HDD 104 (step S511). Thereby, theportal-button registration mode is finished.

An example of the set-information table associated with the action IDsaved in the storage area for the copy application 2303 in the HDD 104is shown in FIG. 14. In this set-information table, the iconinformation, setting information, and action information are associatedwith the action ID. The action information (i.e., the settings of thesetting confirmation display function and immediate execution (immediatestart) function) corresponds to an “action pattern” associated with afunction. When the copy application 2303 always uses the same icon, itis not necessary to save the action ID in association with the iconinformation.

According to the process in FIG. 5, the data about the copy application2303 registered to the portal button is held only by the copyapplication 2303, and the portal application 2307 holds the action IDonly. Since a corresponding application is merely notified of anexecution command when a content registered through the portalapplication 2307 is executed, a content can be registered to a portalbutton by the same procedure even if an application manages data in anydata format. Although the process of the copy application 2303 isdescribed as an example of an application in the first embodiment,registration to a portal button is allowed similarly about anotherapplication, such as the facsimile application.

Next, the call reappearance function executed when a portal buttoncurrently displayed on the top screen 300 is pressed will be described.FIG. 15 is a flowchart of the button call process. The process of theflowchart is achieved when the CPU 101 reads a program stored in the ROM103 to the RAM 102 and runs it. FIG. 15 shows an example where a pressoperation (first operation) is given to the portal button 315corresponding to the portal button No. 6 on the top screen 300 shown inFIG. 3. In FIG. 15, the process executed by the called copy application2303 is illustrated at the right side and the process executed by theportal application 2307 is illustrated at the left side. FIG. 16 andFIG. 17 are views showing examples of the screen displayed on theoperation unit 112 in relation to the button call process.

When detecting pressing of the portal button 315 on the top screen 300,the portal application 2307 first searches the table information shownin FIG. 12 stored in the HDD 104 for the information corresponding tothe pressed portal button (step S1501). Next, the portal application2307 obtains the application ID and action ID corresponding to theportal button 315 from the table information (FIG. 12) and notifies thecopy application 2303 of the obtained application ID and action ID (stepS1502). In this example, the portal application 2307 obtains theapplication ID of “100” and the action ID of “3” that correspond to theportal button No. 6 and notifies.

The copy application 2303 retrieves the action information correspondingto the received action ID from the set-information table shown in FIG.14 stored in the HDD 104 (step S1503). Next, the copy application 2303determines whether the setting confirmation display function included inthe retrieved action information is set to ON (i.e., is valid (true))(step S1504). Then, when the setting confirmation display function isvalid, the copy application 2303 pops up and displays the settingconfirmation screen 1600 concerning the copy application 2303 over thetop screen 300 as shown in FIG. 16 (step S1505). The applicationspecific setting values included in the retrieved information aredisplayed on the setting confirmation screen 1600. After that, the copyapplication 2303 proceeds with the process to step S1506. In themeantime, when the setting confirmation display function is set to OFF(i.e., is invalid), the copy application 2303 proceeds with the processto step S1507 without displaying the setting confirmation screen 1600.

In the step S1506, the copy application 2303 waits until an OK button1601 displayed on the setting confirmation screen 1600 is pressed. Then,when the OK button 1601 is pressed, the copy application 2303 determineswhether the immediate execution function included in the retrievedaction information is set to ON (i.e., is valid (true)) (the step 1507).Then, when the immediate execution function is valid, the copyapplication 2303 executes the function process corresponding to thesetting information in association with the received action ID (stepS1510), and finishes the button call process in FIG. 15. In themeantime, when the immediate execution function is invalid, the copyapplication 2303 displays a setting screen 1700 to which the settinginformation corresponding to the received action ID has been reflected,as shown in FIG. 17 (step S1508). Then, the copy application 2303 waitsuntil a start key (not shown) is pressed (step S1509), and then executesa process in step S1510 when the start key is pressed. The process inthis case is the process concerning the setting information set up inthe step S1508. It should be noted that the start operation by a user isnot limited to only the pressing of the start key, but also an operationor instruction that intends to the start operation may be employed.

As mentioned above, the process of the call reappearance function isexecuted on the basis of the setting information and the actioninformation that has been registered through the action setting screen900. That is, the function is executed according to the action patternregistered in association with the function designated by the portalbutton in response to the portal button call. Furthermore, a “temporarycall function” is provided in the first embodiment. In the “temporarycall function”, the setting information registered to the portal buttoncan be changed on the basis of the action information that is selectedtemporarily at the time of the portal button call. That is, theapplication controls to execute the designated function in the actionpattern corresponding to the user's designation irrespective of theaction pattern registered.

FIG. 18 is a flowchart of a temporary process. The process of theflowchart is achieved when the CPU 101 reads a program stored in the ROM103 to the RAM 102 and runs it. FIG. 18 shows an example of the processin a case where a second operation such as a long press is given to theportal button 315 corresponding to the portal button No. 6 on the topscreen 300 shown in FIG. 3. The process executed by the called copyapplication 2303 is illustrated at the right side and the processexecuted by the portal application 2307 is illustrated at the left side.

Incidentally, there shall be at least two kinds of receivable operationpatterns of a portal button on the top screen 300. The CPU 101 shallselect a mode (first mode) of the button call process (FIG. 15) by afirst operation pattern to a portal button by a user and shall select amode (second mode) of the temporary process (FIG. 18) by a secondoperation pattern that is different from the first operation pattern. Afunction, such as a copy or a facsimile, of which desired settings areregistered is designated by a pressed portal button on the top screen300. Then, the button call process (first mode, FIG. 15) or thetemporary process (second mode, FIG. 18) is selected according to theoperation pattern. The first operation pattern shall be a simple pressoperation of a portal button. In the meantime, the second operationpattern is a long press operation or a continuous press operation ofmultiple times of a portal button. The long press operation shall be apress operation continued beyond a predetermined time period. Thecontinuous press operation shall be press operations of multiple times(for example, 2 times) within a predetermined time period. It should benoted that these operation patterns are not limited to theabove-mentioned example and are sufficient as long as the firstoperation pattern is clearly distinguished from the second operationpattern. In the processes in FIG. 15 and FIG. 18, the CPU 101corresponds to the selection unit and the controller in the presentinvention.

FIG. 19 is a display example of an action selection pop-up window (areception screen). FIG. 20A, FIG. 20B, and FIG. 20C are views showingexamples of a temporary button information table.

When detecting an operation of the second operation to the portal button315 on the top screen 300, the portal application 2307 first retrievesinformation corresponding to the operated portal button from among thetable information shown in FIG. 12 that is stored in the HDD 104 (stepS1801). Next, the portal application 2307 stores the retrievedinformation corresponding to the portal button 315 in the temporarybutton information table in the HDD 104 (step S1802). Thereby, thetemporary button information table changes to a state shown in FIG. 20Bfrom a blank state shown in FIG. 20A. That is, the portal button No. 6and the information corresponding thereto are newly stored in thetemporary button information table.

Next, the portal application 2307 displays an action selection pop-upwindow 1900 on the top screen 300, as shown in FIG. 19 (step S1803).Soft buttons 1901, 1902, 1903, and 1904, a change button 1905, and anexecution button 1906 are displayed on this action selection pop-upwindow 1900. The soft buttons 1901 through 1904 are used for temporarilydesignating whether the contents of the setting information should bedisplayed as a UI screen to confirm before executing the process(function corresponding to the portal button) concerning the settinginformation set up for the portal button. First, the soft buttons 1901and 1902 are respectively used to temporarily turn ON and OFF thesetting confirmation display function, and correspond to the softbuttons 901 and 902 (FIG. 9), respectively. The soft buttons 1903 and1904 are respectively used to temporarily set the immediate executionfunction that designates whether the function process concerning thesetting information corresponding to the portal button is immediatelyexecuted or not. The soft buttons 1903 and 1904 correspond to the softbuttons 903 and 904 (FIG. 9). The settings of the action informationdesignated by the soft buttons 1901 through 1904 is written in thetemporary button information table in the HDD 104. For example, when thesoft buttons 1901 and 1903 are selected, the temporary buttoninformation table changes to a state (the setting confirmation displayfunction is ON and the immediate execution function is ON) shown in FIG.20C from the state shown in FIG. 20B.

Then, the portal application 2307 retrieves the application ID andaction ID that have been written at this time, and notifies the copyapplication 2303 of the application ID and action ID retrieved (stepS1804). In this example, the portal application 2307 obtains theapplication ID of “100” and the action ID of “3” corresponding to theportal button No. 6 and notifies of them.

Next, the portal application 2307 determines whether the executionbutton 1906 on the action selection pop-up window 1900 has been pressed(step S1805). Then, when the execution button 1906 has not been pressed,the portal application 2307 determines whether the change button 1905 onthe action selection pop-up window 1900 has been pressed (step S1807).Then, when the change button 1905 has not been pressed, the portalapplication 2307 returns the process to the step S1805. When theexecution button 1906 has been pressed, the portal application 2307proceeds with the process to step S1806. This means that the copyapplication 2303 received a process execution instruction according tothe setting of the temporary action pattern.

The copy application 2303 retrieves action information from thetemporary button information table shown in FIG. 20C in the HDD 104 andobtains the action information showing that the setting confirmationdisplay function is ON and that the immediate execution function is ON(step S1806). The copy application 2303 executes the process in stepsS1504 through S1510 in FIG. 15 on the basis of the obtained actioninformation (step S1810). It should be noted that the copy application2303 obtains the setting information that is a premise of the processexecuted at the time from the set-information table shown in FIG. 14 onthe basis of the action ID received in the step S1804. Thereby, thefunction is executed in the action pattern corresponding to thedesignation from the user irrespective of the registered action pattern.

In the meantime, when detecting the press of the change button 1905, theportal application 2307 proceeds with the process to step S1808. Thismeans that the copy application 2303 received an instruction of thechange process. In the steps S1808 and S1809, the copy application 2303executes the process that changes (updates) the action setting byoverwriting the action setting at the time of registering the portalbutton with the action setting selected on the action selection pop-upwindow 1900. First, the copy application 2303 retrieves the settinginformation and action information corresponding to the received actionID from the set-information table (FIG. 14) saved in the storage areafor the copy application 2303 in the HDD 104 (step S1808).

Next, the copy application 2303 obtains the retrieved action informationfrom the temporary button information table shown in FIG. 20C andupdates and registers the set-information table shown in FIG. 14 byoverwriting with the obtained action information (step S1809). In thisexample, the contents of the action information corresponding to theportal button No. 6 (corresponding to the action ID “3”) among theset-information table shown in FIG. 14 are changed so that the settingconfirmation display function is ON and the immediate execution functionis ON. Thereby, when the user designates to change the action pattern inthe temporary process, the registered contents about the action patterncorresponding to the designated function are updated according to thechange designation. After executing the process in the step S1810 orS1809, the process in FIG. 18 is finished.

Mainly according to the process in FIG. 5, the CPU 101 stores thesetting information set up through the operation unit 112 in associationwith the action ID for calling it in the HDD 104 and stores the actionID in association with the corresponding button information in the HDD104. Moreover, mainly according to the process in FIG. 15, the CPU 101displays the button information as the portal button that is selectableby the user on the operation unit 112. When the user selects a desiredportal button by an operation of the first operation pattern, the CPU101 retrieves the action ID corresponding to the portal button from theHDD 104. Furthermore, the CPU 101 obtains the setting information andaction information corresponding to the action ID concerned from the HDD104 and executes or reflects the setting information on the basis of theobtained action information. Thereby, a simple operation becomesavailable.

Moreover, mainly according to the process in FIG. 18, when the userselects a desired portal button by an operation of the second operationpattern and designates execution after selecting the action pattern inthe temporary process, the CPU 101 executes the process according to theaction pattern selected in the temporary process. Thereby, a function isexecuted according to an action pattern corresponding to a changeableuser's request. Furthermore, when the user selects a desired portalbutton by an operation of the second operation pattern and designateschange after selecting the action pattern in the temporary process, theCPU 101 stores the action pattern selected in the temporary process andreplaces the action information selected at the time of registration.Thereby, an action pattern of a function is able to be changed accordingto a changeable user's request.

According to the first embodiment, the CPU 101 registers a function inassociation with an action pattern. On the top screen 300 (FIG. 3), theCPU 101 designates a registered function in response to an operation ofa portal button and selects the first mode or the second mode accordingto an operation pattern. Then, when the first mode is selected, the CPU101 executes the function according to the action pattern registeredcorresponding to the designated function. Accordingly, it is convenientfor a user who does not need the confirmation because of habituation dueto repeated use of the function. In the meantime, when the second modeis selected, the CPU 101 controls so as to execute the designatedfunction according to the action pattern that is designated by the useron the action selection pop-up window 1900 (FIG. 19) irrespective of theaction pattern registered corresponding to the designated function.Accordingly, it is convenient for a user who used without confirmationbut needs to confirm the setting values again when using after a longtime. Accordingly, a simple operation is allowed and a function is ableto be executed in an action pattern corresponding to a changeable user'srequest. This enables a careful description about a setting procedurefor a user who is unfamiliar to functions and enables to select todisplay a description screen or to skip displaying by an easy operationaccording to a user's request.

Moreover, when the second mode is selected and when a change designationis given by the user to change an action pattern on the action selectionpop-up window 1900 (FIG. 19), the registered content about the actionpattern corresponding to the designated function is updated according tothe change designation by overwriting (S1809). Since this enables toupdate the registered content of the function when calling and executingthe function, convenience increases.

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. Inthe first embodiment, the buttons for switching ON/OFF of the settingconfirmation display function and immediate execution function aredisplayed on the action selection pop-up window (FIG. 19) displayed bythe temporary call reappearance function. Against this, in the secondembodiment of the present invention, buttons for editing and deleting aportal button are displayed. The second embodiment will be describedwith reference to FIG. 21 and FIG. 22 in place of FIG. 18 and FIG. 19.

FIG. 21 is a flowchart of a temporary process. The process of theflowchart is achieved when the CPU 101 reads a program stored in the ROM103 to the RAM 102 and runs it. FIG. 21 shows an example of the processin a case where a second operation such as a long press is given to theportal button 315 corresponding to the portal button No. 6 on the topscreen 300 shown in FIG. 3. The process executed by the called copyapplication 2303 is illustrated at the right side and the processexecuted by the portal application 2307 is illustrated at the left side.In FIG. 21, the same step numbers are attached to the processing stepsthat are common to the steps in the flowcharts in FIG. 15 and FIG. 18.

FIG. 22 is a display example of an action selection pop-up window. Onthe action selection pop-up window 1907, a setting confirmation button1908, an immediate execution button 1909, a setting call button 1910, anedit button 1911, and a deletion button 1912 are displayed as softbuttons.

The processes in the steps S1801 and S1802 are identical to thecorresponding steps in FIG. 18. In step S2100, the portal application2307 displays the action selection pop-up window 1907 on the top screen300, as shown in FIG. 22. Next, the portal application 2307 determineswhether any one of soft buttons including the setting confirmationbutton 1908, immediate execution button 1909 and setting call button1910 has been pressed (step S2101). Then, when any one of these softbuttons has been pressed, the portal application 2307 retrieves theapplication ID and action ID that have been written at this time, andnotifies the copy application 2303 of the application ID and action IDretrieved (step S1804). The copy application 2303 retrieves actioninformation from the temporary button information table shown in FIG.20C in the HDD 104 and obtains the action information showing that thesetting confirmation display function is ON and that the immediateexecution function is ON (step S1806). The copy application 2303executes the process on the basis of the soft button pressed in the stepS2101 and the obtained action information (step S2108). It should benoted that the copy application 2303 obtains the setting informationthat is a premise of the process executed at the time from theset-information table shown in FIG. 14 on the basis of the action IDreceived in the step S1804.

Specifically, when the setting confirmation button 1908 is pressed, thecopy application 2303 executes a process that is similar to a processexecuted in the case where the setting confirmation display function isON and the immediate execution function is OFF. Accordingly, the copyapplication 2303 displays the setting screen 1700 (FIG. 17) when the OKbutton 1601 is pressed on the setting confirmation screen 1600 (FIG. 16)and then, executes the process when the start key of the operation unit112 is pressed. Moreover, when the immediate execution button 1909 ispressed, the copy application 2303 executes a process that is similar toa process executed in the case where the setting confirmation displayfunction is OFF and the immediate execution function is ON. Accordingly,the copy application 2303 executes the process without displaying thesetting confirmation screen 1600 (FIG. 16) and the setting screen 1700(FIG. 17). Moreover, when the setting call button 1910 is pressed, thecopy application 2303 executes a process that is similar to a processexecuted in the case where the setting confirmation display function isOFF and the immediate execution function is OFF. Accordingly, the copyapplication 2303 displays the setting screen 1700 (FIG. 17) withoutdisplaying the setting confirmation screen 1600 (FIG. 16) and executesthe process when the start key of the operation unit 112 is pressed.Then, the process in FIG. 21 finishes.

As a result of the determination in the step S2101, when any one of thesetting confirmation button 1908, immediate execution button 1909, andsetting call button 1910 has not been pressed, the portal application2307 determines whether the deletion button 1912 has been pressed (stepS2102). Then, when the deletion button 1912 is pressed, the portalapplication 2307 executes the process in the step S1502 in the similarmanner described with reference to FIG. 15. Next, the portal application2307 deletes the information (the button No., application ID, action ID,icon information, and button information) about the portal button 315from the table information shown in FIG. 12 (step S2103). Next, the copyapplication 2303 deletes the information corresponding to the action IDreceived through the step S1502 from the set-information table shown inFIG. 14 (step S2104). Thereby, the registration of the functioncorresponding to the portal button 315 is deleted, and the portal button315 is no longer displayed on the top screen 300 (FIG. 3) after that.Then, the process in FIG. 21 finishes.

As a result of the determination in the step S2102, when the deletionbutton 1912 has not been pressed, it means that the edit button 1911 hasbeen pressed, the portal application 2307 proceeds with the process tothe step S1508. In the step S1508, the copy application 2303 displaysthe setting screen 1700 (FIG. 17). In the second embodiment, an editioncomplete button 1701 is displayed in the setting screen 1700 shown inFIG. 17 unlike the first embodiment. A user is able to change (edit) thesetting on the setting screen 1700. Then, the copy application 2303 waituntil the edition complete button 1701 is pressed (step S2105), andproceeds with the process to step S2106 when the edition complete button1701 is pressed. In the step S2106, a registration process equivalent tothe steps S501 through S510 in FIG. 5 is executed. After that, the copyapplication 2303 updates the set-information table by overwriting thesetting information in the set-information table shown in FIG. 14 withthe setting after editing on the setting screen 1700 in step S2107.Thereby, the registered content about the setting informationcorresponding to the function is updated according to the user's editinginstruction. Then, the process in FIG. 21 finishes.

As mentioned above, since the action patterns for editing and deletingthe registered content of the portal button are available on the actionselection pop-up window that is displayed at the time of calling theportal button in addition to the setting confirmation display function,immediate execution function and setting call function, the operabilityof the portal button is improved.

According to the second embodiment, a simple operation is allowed and afunction is able to be executed in an action pattern corresponding to achangeable user's request as with the first embodiment. Moreover, whenthe second mode is selected and a deletion designation is given by theuser to delete a function, the registration of the designated functionis deleted from the set-information table shown in FIG. 14. Furthermore,when the second mode is selected and an edition designation is given bythe user to edit the setting information, the registered content aboutthe setting information corresponding to the designated function isupdated according to the edition designation. These features improve theoperability and convenience.

In the above-mentioned first and a second embodiments, when the settingconfirmation display function is ON, the setting confirmation screen1600 (FIG. 16) shall be displayed for designating whether thenotification of the setting information is needed before executing thefunction. Moreover, the setting screen 1700 (FIG. 17) shall be displayedfor notification of the setting information. However, the designationmethod about notification of the setting information and thenotification method are not limited to the exemplified screen display,they may be achieved using voice.

OTHER EMBODIMENTS

Embodiment(s) of the present invention can also be realized by acomputer of a system or apparatus that reads out and executes computerexecutable instructions (e.g., one or more programs) recorded on astorage medium (which may also be referred to more fully as a‘non-transitory computer-readable storage medium’) to perform thefunctions of one or more of the above-described embodiment(s) and/orthat includes one or more circuits (e.g., application specificintegrated circuit (ASIC)) for performing the functions of one or moreof the above-described embodiment(s), and by a method performed by thecomputer of the system or apparatus by, for example, reading out andexecuting the computer executable instructions from the storage mediumto perform the functions of one or more of the above-describedembodiment(s) and/or controlling the one or more circuits to perform thefunctions of one or more of the above-described embodiment(s). Thecomputer may comprise one or more processors (e.g., central processingunit (CPU), micro processing unit (MPU)) and may include a network ofseparate computers or separate processors to read out and execute thecomputer executable instructions. The computer executable instructionsmay be provided to the computer, for example, from a network or thestorage medium. The storage medium may include, for example, one or moreof a hard disk, a random-access memory (RAM), a read only memory (ROM),a storage of distributed computing systems, an optical disk (such as acompact disc (CD), digital versatile disc (DVD), or Blu-ray Disc (BD)™),a flash memory device, a memory card, and the like.

While the present invention has been described with reference toexemplary embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is notlimited to the disclosed exemplary embodiments. The scope of thefollowing claims is to be accorded the broadest interpretation so as toencompass all such modifications and equivalent structures andfunctions.

This application claims the benefit of Japanese Patent Application No.2017-222894, filed Nov. 20, 2017, which is hereby incorporated byreference herein in its entirety.

What is claimed is:
 1. An information processing apparatus comprising:one or more processors connected to one or more memories, the one ormore processors being configured to: display one or more buttons, eachof which corresponding processing is associated with, on a displayscreen; in a case where one button among the displayed one or morebuttons is selected through a short press operation by a user, executethe processing associated with the one button; and in a case where onebutton among the displayed one or more buttons is selected through along press operation by a user, display an edit button near the onebutton on the display screen.
 2. The information processing apparatusaccording to claim 1, wherein the one or more processors is configuredto: change the processing associated with the one button in accordancewith selection of the edit button.
 3. The information processingapparatus according to claim 1, wherein the one or more processors isconfigured to: edit the one or more buttons displayed on the displayscreen in accordance with selection of the edit button.
 4. Theinformation processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the longpress operation is a touching operation on one of the displayed one ormore buttons continued beyond a predetermined time period.
 5. A controlmethod for an information processing apparatus, the control methodcomprising: displaying one or more buttons, each of which correspondingprocessing is associated with, on a display screen; in a case where onebutton among the displayed one or more buttons is selected through ashort press operation by a user, executing the processing associatedwith the one button; and in a case where one button among the displayedone or more buttons is selected through a long press operation by auser, displaying an edit button near the one button on the displayscreen.
 6. The control method according to claim 5, further comprising:changing the processing associated with the one button in accordancewith selection of the edit button.
 7. The control method according toclaim 5, further comprising: editing the one or more buttons displayedon the display screen in accordance with selection of the edit button.8. The control method according to claim 5, wherein the long pressoperation is a touching operation on one of the displayed one or morebuttons continued beyond a predetermined time period.